Articles

A How-To Guide for Residential Landlords

Every residential landlord in Arizona needs to know the ins and outs of the Arizona Residential Landlord and Tenant Act, a series of laws designed primarily to protect residential tenants. Failing to comply with these laws can affect a landlord’s rights and, even worse, could leave a landlord defending a lawsuit if certain actions are […]

BUYER BEWARE! Get a Title Policy, not a Preliminary Title Report or Commitment

In any economic downturn, opportunities present themselves. One such opportunity is the purchase of foreclosed property. The amount of Trustee Sale Notices and properties sold at auction increased six-fold in Pima County between August 2006 and August 2010.  Due diligence necessary to purchase foreclosed property generally requires obtaining some kind of title report to learn […]

Caveat Emptor: Disclosing Facts Obtained in Confidence

Buyers’ Real Estate Agents Obliged to Tell Sellers of Foreseeable Risks On December 13, 2000, the Arizona Supreme Court ruled that a buyer’s real estate agent may be liable for failing to inform the seller that the buyer might be unable to make all the payments because of financial difficulties. [Lombardo v. Albu, 14 P.3d […]

Commercial Real Estate Terminology

Below is a list of certain terms that frequently appear in commercial leases, but have meanings that may be misunderstood or misinterpreted, thus deserving of a second look. Absolute Net This requires the tenant to pay, in addition to base rent, all costs associated with the operation, maintenance and repair of the building, all real […]

Going Green

The federal government extended its solar energy system credit in the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008, which allows taxpayers who install a solar energy system to receive a credit on their federal tax return for 30% of the system’s cost.  Similarly, in Arizona, homeowners can claim a 25% tax credit on up to $4,000 […]

Guarantor Liability Law Changes

The courts are filled with cases against guarantors and individual general partners. After foreclosing real estate, lenders are proceeding against the borrowers, general partners and guarantors for deficiency judgments (i.e., the difference between what a borrower owes on an outstanding loan and the amount a lender receives from the sale of the foreclosed collateral). Because […]

Know Your Easement

Early case law describes property rights like a bundle of sticks. Each stick represents a different right that can include the right of ownership, of possession, of use, the right to collect rents, the right to income produced by the land, etc. Easements generally concern only one of those sticks – the right of use […]

Protect Yourself From Standard Real Estate & Architect Agreements

If “standard” agreements included terms that met the reasonable expectations of both parties, there would be little reason for lawyers to review the average contract for real estate, architecture and numerous other forms. However, too often, a “standard” agreement is not fair to both parties and omits reasonable obligations for both parties. Contracts which limit […]

Selected Real Property Foreclosure Issues

The Foreclosure Title Report Title companies in Arizona issue a trustee’s sale guarantee for non-judicial foreclosures. A litigation guarantee or a foreclosure report is issued for the judicial foreclosure of a real property security interest. The guarantee report is generally a commitment to insure title to the property in the name of the beneficiary under […]

Terms That Should Be Included in a Real Estate Contract

1. Buyer may terminate the contract for any reason or no reason, in Buyer’s sole discretion, whether questionably reasonable or not. 2. Upon termination all earnest money shall be released to Buyer immediately. 3. If there is evidence of termites, Buyer may terminate this agreement and earnest money will be released to Buyer immediately. 4. […]